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There are only two jerseys retired in the Vancouver Canucks organization, with #12 Stan Smyl and #16 Trevor Linden having made unparalleled contributions to the leadership of the hockey club.

But when the discussion turns to any other players who might warrant the honor, the names thrown around are typically Markus Naslund (#19), Cliff Ronning (#7) and Doug Lidster (#3). The former Canucks captain set the club record for points by a defenseman in a single season (63) in the mid-1980s, a record that still stands. He is also arguably the most talented and graceful skater ever to lace up the skates in Vancouver.

He played for the Canucks from 1983 through 1993, before finishing up his career with the New York Rangers and Dallas Stars, where he contributed to a pair of Stanley Cups. These made for some lofty accomplishments for a player who was drafted 133rd overall (7th round) in 1980 and didn’t don an NHL jersey until three years later.

But his NHL career was sandwiched by two stints with the Canadian National Team, where he played 66 games in 1983-84, and then another 38 in 1998-99. Over these 104 games, he scored 47 points in international competition.

In recent years, Lidster has taken to coaching, with stints as an assistant with Medicine Hat in the WHL, and as a head coach with the OHL’s Saginaw Spirit. Of particular note is that he will be serving Canada again with his hockey expertise, this time as a coach. Lidster has signed on to coach the Canadian women’s Olympic hockey team at the 2010 games in Vancouver, providing another opportunity for one of the Canucks’ all time greats to put on a familiar display of leadership and patriotism.